OZARK — Paula Hall walked out of jail on Thursday with a 2009 murder conviction overturned but a degree of uncertainty about her future.

Hall was convicted in February 2009 of second-degree murder for the 2003 death of Oldfield resident Freda Heyn and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

An appeals court overturned Hall’s conviction and then vacated the decision to overturn weeks later. Judge John Moody overturned Hall’s conviction a second time and ordered a new trial.

Moody said in his order that prosecuting attorneys denied Hall her right to due process rights when Christian County prosecutors failed to provide defense counsel with the criminal history of the state’s star witness. Moody called the evidence against Hall “razor thin.”

Defense attorney Rita Sanders always believed that Hall was not guilty of murdering Heyn. But the state’s three witnesses all testified Hall killed Heyn, 68 at the time she died.

Their witnesses: convicted felon David Epperson, and two alleged “jailhouse snitches,” one of whom is Lisa Bonham.

Epperson was arrested in connection with the Heyn slaying but made a plea agreement with prosecutors for his testimony against Hall. He served time for tampering with physical evidence and possession of a controlled substance, and is now out of jail. At Hall’s trial, Epperson testified that he helped clean up a bloody scene at Heyn’s home.

Former Christian County Prosecutor Ron Cleek said he offered the plea agreement because Epperson was the only person willing to give information about Heyn’s death.

Bonham’s testimony became the defense’s biggest target.

Sanders filed a post-conviction relief motion in December to overturn Hall’s conviction after she learned that the prosecution provided the criminal history of the wrong Lisa Bonham.

Bonham pleaded guilty to violating probation in November 2008 in Christian County. She was ordered to serve five years in prison with the court’s option of placing her back on probation within 120 days of her sentencing.

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Moody said Sanders could have used that information to discredit Bonham at trial.

“Had (Sanders) known of the sentence, she could have sought further discovery regarding any agreements between the Christian County Prosecuting Attorney’s office and Ms. Bonham,” he wrote. “There is no question the information could have been useful in impeaching witness Lisa Bonham by demonstrating motive to lie.”

Sanders feels that Bonham was motivated by a desire to save herself from time behind bars and saw testifying against Hall as her way out of trouble.

“She bragged about she was going to use Paula as her ticket from going to prison,” Sanders said.

Cleek and current Assistant Prosecutor Donovan Dobbs, who tried the case with Cleek, said they never made a deal for Bonham’s testimony.

“At trial (Sanders) could have brought out the possible influence on her testimony of the five-year sentence hanging over her and any concern she might have had regarding the influence of the prosecutor in determining whether she ultimately received probation or the sentence,” Moody wrote.

Though Paula Hall is free from prison, she could be retried for Heyn’s murder. Christian County Prosecuting Attorney Amy Fite may also dismiss the case, though Fite declined to comment on Hall’s status.

Sanders said she believed it would be a waste of taxpayers’ money if Fite were to retry Hall.